Great conditions for Trans Baviaans

The Trans Baviaans Mountain Bike Race has grown in popularity over the last 12 years, that the entries for the 2015 event sold out within 8 hours.

The organisers then made the decision to host a second race on the following weekend to give more riders the opportunity to ride and experience this exclusive, limited entry event.

On the morning of the first race day (15 Aug) , the clear Willowmore skies promised the riders ideal conditions. There was an added bonus of a tailwind all the way to Checkpoint 2 (Geelhoutbos) – 104 km into the race.

By the time the top teams reached Baviaansback, the first of numerous challenging climbs, the race was on and a gruelling pace was maintained over The Fangs and the infamous Mother Of all Climbs.

Part of the event dynamic is that the route is not marked. Each team is provided with a map to navigate their way through the Baviaans Kloof (SA’s largest wilderness area and now a heritage site).

This requires riders to stay mentally sharp at all times, a challenge in its own for 230 kms. Team Sporadies Normardies, the front runners for most of the way, took a wrong turn in the last 20km and lost their lead, still happily finishing with smiles on their faces, proving that just finishing an event like this makes them winners.

Team Jeep took the win in a time of 8:29:58, almost breaking the former record.

Top 10 Teams:

Team Jeep

Powerbar 1

Aerocare -Proper Con

Sasol Racing

Sponsor Yourself

Atlas Copco Team 1

Four Brothers

Solar Wise

Demicon / Rocky Mounta

Bianchi

The last team Wild Rovers finished as the sun was rising over Jeffrey’s Bay, with a few hours to spare before the cut-off of 24 hours. These are the real heroes of the event, finishing in a time of 20:50:49.